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Standard treatment of X‐linked hypophosphatemia can heal rickets but does not always raise the level of phosphates in the blood or return growth levels to normal. It is unclear whether combining human growth hormone therapy with standard treatment improves the phosphate levels, growth rates and bone mineral density. Only one small trial with five children was included in this review. The human growth hormone treatment improved the z score for height and briefly increased the level of phosphates in the blood. However, we found no conclusive evidence that favours the use of human growth hormone treatment for this condition. There have not been enough trials of human growth hormone treatment for this condition and more research is needed.

Bone mineral content (BMC) or density (BMD) may be decreased in children with epilepsy either as a consequence of the epilepsy, the condition that caused the epilepsy or the treatment for epilepsy. This paper investigates the effects of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) on BMD in children. A systematic search of Pubmed resulted in 14 papers that described changes in BMD in children on AEDs. For phenytoin, one study failed to show a decrease in femur BMD, whereas another study reported a decrease in total body and spine BMD, but only with the use of phenytoin for > 2 years. With phenytoin combined with a ketogenic diet, a decrease in forearm BMC was seen. For phenobarbital, one study showed a decrease in spine and total body BMD, but only among those who had used phenobarbital for > 2 years. Six studies were available for carbamazepine, and none of these showed a decrease in BMD in any skeletal site. For valproate, results were diverse; two studies reported a decrease in spine BMD, whereas two other studies did not. Two studies reported a decrease in hip BMD with valproate, whereas one did not. All three studies on forearm BMD in users of valproate described a decrease. Three studies reported an improvement in BMC with vitamin D supplementation in children on AEDs. No reports on changes in BMD among users of newer AEDs are available. In conclusion, more evidence is needed for the effects on BMD in children, especially for newer AEDs. The available studies have all been cross-sectional, and longitudianal studies are needed along with studies on potential interventions in children with decreased BMD.

Rising awareness about the potential link between vitamin D deficiency and adverse health outcomes has seen an increase in the rate of vitamin D testing in developed countries. The cost of a single vitamin D test is moderate (e.g., $61.32 in British Colombia) but the elevated testing rate contributes to substantial healthcare costs. Concern over rising costs led to reform in testing coverage in 2010 in Ontario, followed by other provinces. The changes in Ontario were based on a 2010 report by the Ontario Health Technology Advisory Committee (OHTAC) on the clinical utility of vitamin D testing (reviewed in this report). Despite a lack of direct evidence on testing, a recommendation was made against providing testing for the general population. Tests are now indicated only for individuals with specific conditions (i.e., osteoporosis, rickets, osteomalacia, malabsorption syndromes, renal disease, and individuals taking medications that may affect vitamin D status). The Endocrine Society and Osteoporosis Canada also recommend against screening for low risk individuals. There is a lack of evidence to suggest that the rise in test frequency has translated into improved healthcare practices. For example, the temporal increase in testing in Australia has not resulted in improved osteoporosis detection in women aged 45 to 74. There is also a lack of evidence on the cost-effectiveness of testing. In light of the rise in test frequency, assay and cut-off inconsistency, and the lack of evidence for the utility of testing, this report will investigate the clinical and cost-effectiveness of testing in the general population.

Rapid Response Report: Summary with Critical Appraisal - Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health.

Contraception can be divided into two broad categories: hormonal and nonhormonal. There are two categories of hormonal contraception: combined oestrogen and progestogen and progestogen-only. Long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) is defined in this guideline as methods that require administering less than once per cycle or month.

Falls represent an important source of preventable morbidity and mortality in older adults, the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population. We undertook a systematic review of falls interventions applicable to primary care populations to inform the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s (USPSTF’s) updated recommendation on preventing falls in older adults.

This review assessed the efficacy and safety of interventions to increase vitamin D. The authors concluded that vitamin D3 plus calcium supplementation has beneficial effects on bone mineral density, fractures and falls without evidence of harm, although these may be limited to particular subgroups. These conclusions accurately reflected the evidence and were likely to be reliable.

In 2009, the Institute of Medicine/Food and Nutrition Board constituted a Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) committee to undertake a review of the evidence that had emerged (since the 1997 DRI report) on the relationship of vitamin D and calcium, both individually and combined, to a wide range of health outcomes, and potential revision of the DRI values for these nutrients. To support that review, several United States and Canadian Federal Government agencies commissioned a systematic review of the scientific literature for use during the deliberations by the committee. The intent was to support a transparent literature review process and provide a foundation for subsequent reviews of the nutrients. The committee used the resulting literature review in their revision of the DRIs.

Study found insufficient evidence to support definite clinical recommendations regarding vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy. Although there is modest evidence to support a relationship between maternal 25-hydroxy vitamin D [25(OH)D] status and offspring birthweight, bone mass and serum calcium concentrations, these findings were limited by their observational nature (birthweight, bone mass) or risk of bias and low quality (calcium concentrations).

Vitamin D is a micronutrient important for bone growth and immune function. Deficiency can lead to rickets and has been linked to various infections, including respiratory infections. Several studies have reported an association between vitamin D deficiency and infections among children, and is thought to be related to the role of vitamin D in the immune system. In this systematic review, Cochrane researchers examined the role of vitamin D supplementation in prevention of infections in children under five years of age. The researchers studied the infections of pneumonia, tuberculosis (TB), diarrhoea, and malaria in this review.

The original antenatal care guideline was published by NICE in 2003. Since then a number of important pieces of evidence have become available, particularly concerning gestational diabetes, haemoglobinopathy and ultrasound, so that the update was initiated. This update has also provided an opportunity to look at a number of aspects of antenatal care: the development of a method to assess women for whom additional care is necessary (the ‘antenatal assessment tool’), information giving to women, lifestyle (vitamin D supplementation, alcohol consumption), screening for the baby (use of ultrasound for gestational age assessment and screening for fetal abnormalities, methods for determining normal fetal growth, placenta praevia), and screening for the mother (haemoglobinopathy screening, gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and preterm labour, chlamydia).

Systematic reviews represent a rigorous and transparent approach of synthesizing scientific evidence that minimizes bias. They evolved within the medical community to support development of clinical and public health practice guidelines, set research agendas and formulate scientific consensus statements. The use of systematic reviews for nutrition related topics is more recent. Systematic reviews provide independently-conducted comprehensive and objective assessments of available information addressing precise questions. This approach to summarizing available data is a useful tool for identifying the state of science including knowledge gaps and associated research needs, supporting development of science-based recommendations and guidelines, and serving as the foundation for updates as new data emerge.

Atopic eczema (atopic dermatitis) is a chronic inflammatory itchy skin condition that develops in early childhood in the majority of cases. It is typically an episodic disease of exacerbation (flares, which may occur as frequently as two or three per month) and remissions, except for severe cases where it may be continuous. Certain patterns of atopic eczema are recognised. In infants, atopic eczema usually involves the face and extensor surfaces of the limbs and, while it may involve the trunk, the napkin area is usually spared. A few infants may exhibit a discoid pattern (circular patches). In older children flexural involvement predominates, as in adults. Diagnostic criteria are discussed in Chapter 3. As with other atopic conditions, such as asthma and allergic rhinitis (hay fever), atopic eczema often has a genetic component. In atopic eczema, inherited factors affect the development of the skin barrier, which can lead to exacerbation of the disease by a large number of trigger factors, including irritants and allergens. Many cases of atopic eczema clear or improve during childhood while others persist into adulthood, and some children who have atopic eczema `will go on to develop asthma and/or allergic rhinitis; this sequence of events is sometimes referred to as the ‘atopic march’. The epidemiology of atopic eczema is considered in Chapter 5, and the impact of the condition on children and their families/caregivers is considered in Sections 4.2 and 4.3.

Coeliac disease is an autoimmune condition associated with chronic inflammation of the small intestine, which can lead to malabsorption of nutrients. Dietary proteins, known as glutens, which are present in wheat, barley and rye activate an abnormal mucosal immune response. Clinical and histological improvements usually follow when gluten is excluded from the diet.

This guidance provides a summary of the clinical features associated with maltreatment (alerting features) that may be observed when a child presents to healthcare professionals. Its purpose is to raise awareness and help healthcare professionals who are not specialists in child protection to identify children who may be being maltreated. It does not give healthcare professionals recommendations on how to diagnose, confirm or disprove child maltreatment.